2 The Sunk Cost Trap at Institutional Scale

prog acoustic texas blues, afrikaner folk tango, afrikaner folk drill, new orleans cloud rap

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Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Started with a billion-dollar plan
Promised shareholders we'd take our stand
Two years in, the market's shifted ground
But the team keeps pushing the same old sound
Middle managers with their careers on the line
Say "We're almost there, just give us more time"

[Chorus]
It's the sunk cost trap at institutional scale
When investments create their own protective veil
The bigger the spend, the stronger the guard
Admitting we're wrong becomes twice as hard
Political coalitions rise to defend
What should have died at the very first bend

[Verse 2]
Engineering knows the platform's flawed
Marketing sees the customers aren't awed
But the VP who championed this crusade
Can't let his reputation start to fade
Board meetings echo with the same refrain
"We've come too far to turn back again"

[Chorus]
It's the sunk cost trap at institutional scale
When investments create their own protective veil
The bigger the spend, the stronger the guard
Admitting we're wrong becomes twice as hard
Political coalitions rise to defend
What should have died at the very first bend

[Bridge]
Rational minds can see the writing on the wall
But rational minds don't make the final call
When livelihoods depend on seeing it through
Objective truth gets a distorted view
The math is clear but the politics aren't
And that's the lesson we all need to learn

[Verse 3]
Competitors race ahead with ease
While we're still funding our own disease
The exit ramps keep flying by
As defenders double down on their lie
Not malice but incentives gone astray
Make tomorrow's problems today's decay

[Chorus]
It's the sunk cost trap at institutional scale
When investments create their own protective veil
The bigger the spend, the stronger the guard
Admitting we're wrong becomes twice as hard
Political coalitions rise to defend
What should have died at the very first bend

[Outro]
Watch for the coalitions that form around your spend
They'll fight correction until the bitter end

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